So I'm sitting here, thinking about what roster moves may be coming down the pipe in the next few days...
The immediate concern has to be backup catcher. Gerald Laird apparently just has a bruised hand, rather than a break (like it appeared when it happened), and is day-to-day.
But if Laird isn't available tomorrow, the Rangers would almost certainly have to call up Chris Stewart from AAA...with a game tomorrow and a doubleheader on Tuesday, I don't think the Rangers are going to risk being shorthanded behind the plate.
And Stewart, for what it is worth, had a day off today in AAA.
If Stewart comes up, my guess right now would be that Robinson Tejeda goes down. He's been simply awful the past couple of months, can't throw strikes, and apparently is having mechanical issues. Being patient with a pitcher is one thing...having a guy whose mechanics are a mess and can't give you more than 4 innings for a couple of months straight is something else.
Tejeda's spot in the rotation could be skipped anyway...the Rangers could skip that slot until August 4, with the upcoming offdays.
Now, Tuesday you'll have to make a roster move anyway to bring up John Rheinecker, who is starting one of the doubleheader games. Rheinecker is starting the first game, so if Laird is good to go on Tuesday, you can send Stewart back down and call up Rheinecker for game one. If not, you presumably send Scott Feldman back down and call up Rheinecker.
I am guessing Wes Littleton will be hanging out at a hotel in Arlington on Tuesday afternoon, waiting for the game to end, since the sensible move then would be to send Rheinecker back to Oklahoma after game 1 and recall Wes Littleton, to give you a fresh arm in the bullpen.
In the alternative, if Stewart isn't activated and Tejeda isn't sent down, Feldman gets optioned before the game on Tuesday, Rheinecker is recalled and sent down after game 1, and Littleton is activated for game 2.
And then, ideally, at some point next week, Jason Botts gets called up and Sammy Sosa is released...